24
SEPTEMBER 2013 PRO INSTALLER
PRO NEWS
www.proinstaller.co.uk
THE RIGHT
ROOFLINE
CHOICE
Skyline Roofing Centres, Freefoam stockists from London
and the South East, have recorded a 25% increase in year
on year sales of fascia, soffit and rainwater products.
Skyline introduced the
Freefoam range to all
9 branches 18 months
ago.
With a steady increase
in stock levels across the
company these sales figures
reflect the high confidence
shown by Skyline and their
customers in the range. Skyline’s branches have a wide
geographic coverage across
London and the South East
up into Hertfordshire and
Bedfordshire, offering exposure of the Freefoam brand
to a high footfall of potential customers.
Builder Fined After
Worker Suffers LifeChanging Injuries
A Leicestershire builder
has been fined after a
worker suffered multiple injuries when he
plunged six metres
while repairing a second floor window.
The 50-year-old worker
from Leicester, had been
sub-contracted to repair
wooden window frames at a
house in Hazel Grove, Hallaton, near Market Harborough in Leicestershire.
He was working from
a ladder extended to just
under the window when he
dropped a piece of window
bead. As he started to climb
down the ladder to retrieve
it, he fell to the patio below,
smashing his workbench on
the way.
He was airlifted to hospital
with head injuries, five
fractures to his spine and a
fractured pelvis and wrist.
The Health and Safety
Executive (HSE) investigated
the incident and prosecuted
Peter Steans for safety failings at Leicester Magistrates’
Court.
HSE’s investigation found a
suitable tower scaffold was
on site that could have been
used to remove the risk of
working from a ladder.
Peter William Steans, 61,
pleaded guilty to breaching
Regulation 4(1)(c) of the
Work at Height Regulations
2005. He was fined £4,000
and ordered to pay costs of
£353.
HSE Inspector Tony Mitchell said: “The injured man
will never be able to return
to his normal job, yet the incident and the life-changing
injuries it caused could have
been prevented.”
“Builders should not think
that just because they use
casual workers, they are not
responsible for their safety.
If you are in control of the
work then you will be held
accountable should things
go wrong.”
Further information on
working safely at height
can be found online at
www.hse.gov.uk/falls
‘the benefits
of Freefoam
including
the lifetime
guarantee’
Wesley Revell, Purchasing
Manager, explained “We
changed our main roofline
supplier to Freefoam last
year and had a phased introduction of the range to each
branch. Simon Parrott, Freefoam’s Area Sales Manager
worked closely with us dur-
ing this period to make sure
everything went smoothly
and we’ve been pleased with
how easily the new range
has slotted in alongside our
existing products. Customers
have bought into the benefits of Freefoam including
the lifetime guarantee and
we’ve seen an increase in
the number of Freefoam
Registered Installers.”
For further information
on Freefoam products
call 01604 591110, email
[email protected] or
visit www.freefoam.com
HEALTH AND SAFETY
MYTH BUSTING
Double glazing company says ‘no’ to use of super glue for repairs.
Issue
Panel decision
The enquirer recently made a complaint to a double glazing company regarding the installation of double glazing to
his home. He was informed that the window sill could not
be repaired using super glue because of health and safety
rules.
This is a clear case of “health and safety” being used as a
convenient excuse to hide poor customer service. Superglue
is readily available for purchase by the public and only requires users to follow the directions and simple precautions
for its use provided by the supplier. If the company has
some other reason for not using glue to fix what appears
to be a simple problem it should say so, not use health and
safety as an excuse.
Hotel claims security door chains have to be removed in case of emergency.
Issue
Panel decision
A hotel guest was unhappy that the hotel had removed
the security door chains from their hotel rooms, preventing
the door from being locked from the inside. There was still
a lever style handle that locked the door but the guest felt
this could easily have been opened by a child, allowing the
child to leave the room. The hotel stated that due to n